I’ve never really sat down to think about what I could be called an “expert” at. Dictionary.com defines an expert as “a person who has special skill or knowledge in some particular field.” I don’t have any special skills and I’m not overly knowledgeable in any particular subject. Personally, I think that to be an expert at something, one has to have continually dedicated hours upon hours to a specific hobby or interest. Some people are experts at sports, or music, or academics. My expertise lies within none of these categories. If I had to label myself as an expert at something, I would say that I have mastered the art of helping people.
I have been lucky as far as my family life goes. I have two parents who care for me and love me unconditionally. Unfortunately, they stopped loving each other. This was about five years ago when I noticed their marital problems. It was only a little more than a two years ago when they decided they were going to file for a divorce. My little brother, twelve at the time, did not see this coming. He struggled with it for the longest time. My junior year of high school was hard for me as well with all that was going on at home. My parents still lived together, but slept in separate rooms. This close living space led to many disagreements and verbal fights. When my parents would argue, my brother would shut down. He would run to the playroom and break into tears. These fights affected me as well, but I focused my efforts on staying strong for my little brother. I would comfort him with hugs and calm reassurance that everything would get better soon. Helping my brother cope with my parents’ divorce made me feel like a better person. Helping him actually helped me.
My desire to help others extended to my friends. I have never been the type of person to stick with a cliquey group of friends. Instead, my friends came from all different places and walks of life. I specifically had this one friend, Casey, who struggled a lot with everything. Her mother had been battling Multiple sclerosis (MS) for years, which in turn, led her father to take out his stress by physically abusing Casey. With all this going on around her, Casey began to doubt her own worth as a person. Casey's low self esteem then led her to abuse prescription drugs and self-harm I never wanted her to feel like she had nobody on her side. I offered her my support as much as she would accept and made sure that she always had someone there for her. Helping Casey and being alongside her as she recovered made me feel like I had purpose. I was a positive influence in her life when she needed one. Later when I was dealing with my own personal issues, Casey was there for me. She reminded me that she owed me for always being there for her. This just reassured me that I really did make a difference in her life. My helpfulness had visible results.
I also shared my expertise in helpfulness in an academic setting. My senior year of high school, I took AP Physics. This was my favorite class ever and I was a deep learner and always wanted to fully understand the material that was presented. This led to many days after school with my wonderful teacher, Mr. Levesque. There were always many students from my AP class, as well as regular physics students staying for extra help. On days where students swarmed Mr. Levesque, I would volunteer to help them out if I could. I would put my own questions on hold and answer those of the physics students. When I explained concepts and worked through example problems with them, it would actually help me better understand the material. If I could explain it, that meant I really knew it. I would also stay after school with my AP Physics lab group and other groups and help my fellow classmates work through homework problems if I knew the solutions. Helping other students also gave me visible results when I saw that their homework and test grades would improve. I get great satisfaction from seeing others benefit from my help.
My acts of helpfulness extended beyond family, friends, and peers to random strangers who I’ve never met before. Performing random acts of kindness always gives me extra satisfaction. Just knowing that I could have single handedly made someone’s awful day significantly better makes me feel good about myself. Simple acts like holding the door for someone or picking up something I saw someone drop take little time and have great benefits. Seeing a friendly genuine smile every once in a while just proves that my helpfulness is being appreciated. Being appreciated makes me feel good and accomplished.
To be an expert certainly does not mean you are all knowing, or perfect in any way. I would never consider myself perfect, or an expert, but I do think that one area I excel in is helpfulness. I think that a special skill that benefits oneself and others is the best type of skill to master. A skill like this takes just as much commitment, time, and patience to be mastered. I look at my helpfulness as one of my best assets.
I have been lucky as far as my family life goes. I have two parents who care for me and love me unconditionally. Unfortunately, they stopped loving each other. This was about five years ago when I noticed their marital problems. It was only a little more than a two years ago when they decided they were going to file for a divorce. My little brother, twelve at the time, did not see this coming. He struggled with it for the longest time. My junior year of high school was hard for me as well with all that was going on at home. My parents still lived together, but slept in separate rooms. This close living space led to many disagreements and verbal fights. When my parents would argue, my brother would shut down. He would run to the playroom and break into tears. These fights affected me as well, but I focused my efforts on staying strong for my little brother. I would comfort him with hugs and calm reassurance that everything would get better soon. Helping my brother cope with my parents’ divorce made me feel like a better person. Helping him actually helped me.
My desire to help others extended to my friends. I have never been the type of person to stick with a cliquey group of friends. Instead, my friends came from all different places and walks of life. I specifically had this one friend, Casey, who struggled a lot with everything. Her mother had been battling Multiple sclerosis (MS) for years, which in turn, led her father to take out his stress by physically abusing Casey. With all this going on around her, Casey began to doubt her own worth as a person. Casey's low self esteem then led her to abuse prescription drugs and self-harm I never wanted her to feel like she had nobody on her side. I offered her my support as much as she would accept and made sure that she always had someone there for her. Helping Casey and being alongside her as she recovered made me feel like I had purpose. I was a positive influence in her life when she needed one. Later when I was dealing with my own personal issues, Casey was there for me. She reminded me that she owed me for always being there for her. This just reassured me that I really did make a difference in her life. My helpfulness had visible results.
I also shared my expertise in helpfulness in an academic setting. My senior year of high school, I took AP Physics. This was my favorite class ever and I was a deep learner and always wanted to fully understand the material that was presented. This led to many days after school with my wonderful teacher, Mr. Levesque. There were always many students from my AP class, as well as regular physics students staying for extra help. On days where students swarmed Mr. Levesque, I would volunteer to help them out if I could. I would put my own questions on hold and answer those of the physics students. When I explained concepts and worked through example problems with them, it would actually help me better understand the material. If I could explain it, that meant I really knew it. I would also stay after school with my AP Physics lab group and other groups and help my fellow classmates work through homework problems if I knew the solutions. Helping other students also gave me visible results when I saw that their homework and test grades would improve. I get great satisfaction from seeing others benefit from my help.
My acts of helpfulness extended beyond family, friends, and peers to random strangers who I’ve never met before. Performing random acts of kindness always gives me extra satisfaction. Just knowing that I could have single handedly made someone’s awful day significantly better makes me feel good about myself. Simple acts like holding the door for someone or picking up something I saw someone drop take little time and have great benefits. Seeing a friendly genuine smile every once in a while just proves that my helpfulness is being appreciated. Being appreciated makes me feel good and accomplished.
To be an expert certainly does not mean you are all knowing, or perfect in any way. I would never consider myself perfect, or an expert, but I do think that one area I excel in is helpfulness. I think that a special skill that benefits oneself and others is the best type of skill to master. A skill like this takes just as much commitment, time, and patience to be mastered. I look at my helpfulness as one of my best assets.